Nicole Whittaker
Nicole Whittaker is a student at Whistling Pines Junior High. Background Nicole is the only child of Reginald and Celeste Whittaker, a wealthy couple who have been shown to live in a mansion and employ at least one butler. Little is known about Nicole's past, though it can be assumed that she lived a comfortable and somewhat spoiled life. She claims to have grown up on her grandmother's "English estate" in one of her locker voice clips in Tricky Decision. But it is possible that this claim is exaggerated to make herself appear better than the player. Sometime when she was 11 years old and in the 6th grade, 2 years before the events in New School, Nicole formed the elite clique known as The Ones with Stephanie Hollis and Whitney Weiss. Personality Nicole is a stereotypical popular girl: She is vain, self-centered, snobby, petty, and elitist. For most of the games, her personality revolves only around these traits and she is shown to have no redeeming qualities. She is shown numerous times to be willing to drop her friends for trivial reasons such as them not doing what she tells them to do, for doing things she doesn't like, or the presence of unfavorable rumors circulating about a person. Most of her friends dismiss these public outbursts as "moods" and describe her as being an acquired taste. She mentions in New School that she views climbing the Social Ladder as a "sport" and that anyone who is afraid of her is forcing her to treat them badly. However, a softer side of her is shown in later releases. In Secret Paths to the Sea, she is shown to be somewhat of a homebody in private, preferring to write in her diary and go for walks than play the Popularity Game and compete with others to be the best like her parents force her to do. This pressure from her parents is probably what caused her social climbing nature and her habit of referring to her parents by their first names instead of "Mom" and "Dad". In First Dance, it is possible for Rockett Movado to attend the dance with The Ones. If Rockett wins Queen of Hearts, Nicole will congratulate her and extend the offer for her to sit with The Ones at lunch, something that would have been unthinkable in the earlier games and a large contrast to her reaction to Rockett trying to sit at The Ones table in New School. In Starfire, she is shown to be indifferent to even Mavis Wartella-Depew's presence at the lunch table. Even at her worst, one of Nicole's biggest weaknesses is flattery. Complimenting her and making her look good is a surefire way for anybody to get on her good side. Interests & Skills Nicole's main interests are horseback riding and fashion. She is also shown in Tricky Decision and Secret Paths to the Sea to have some skill in soccer. However, it is possible that she was forced by her parents to play it, as she threatens to stop hanging out with Stephanie for playing it and mistakes the term cleats for the name of a fashion designer in Starfire Soccer Challenge. She is also shown to have some creative writing skills, as Ms. Tinydahl mentions that her class assignments are always "an inspiration read". Relationships Being the leader of The Ones, Nicole hangs out with Whitney and Stephanie more than anyone else. She also frequently associates with Cleve Goodstaff, Chaz Franklin, and Max Diamond. In New School, Nicole is shown to have an open crush on Mr. Rarebit, whom she refers to by his first name. However, from Tricky Decision onward, she spends most of her time pursuing Wolf DuBois and is shown to be very smitten with him. This is most evident in First Dance when she writes about an imaginary tryst between the two of them for a Language Arts assignment. Both have rejected her advances, with Rarebit going so far as to write a letter to her parents in an attempt to get her interested in boys her age. Nicole has also made attempts to get close to and flatter Ruben Rosales. But according to some locker items, she is just trying get him to do her homework for her. Plots Secret Paths to the Sea Nicole is stressed out over the fact that her parents fill up her schedule with extra classes and activities in order to give her an advantage over the other kids. This situation comes to a head when Nicole arrives to her computer class without changing out of her horseback riding clothes, causing her to become the laughingstock of the class when she learns that she has horse poop on her boots. After traveling her path, a mountain trail leading up to a pond, she learns that she has to communicate with her parents and show them that she can't be her best when she's tired and stressed. Rockett's New School Nicole's first possible appearance is in the Bird Cage insulting Jessie Marbella by wondering aloud if she had gotten more interesting over the summer and dismissing Rockett as being beneath her notice. It is also possible for Rockett to accidentally trip Nicole as she is making her way into the school. In Homeroom, Nicole confronts Rockett for sitting in "her" seat or placing her backpack in it, angrily pointing out that she needs to sit there in order to talk to Whitney. Whitney dismisses her and forces her to angrily move to another seat. At lunch, depending on the choices of the player, Nicole either informs Rockett that the cafeteria food, save for the salads, is horrible, insults her for being too "delicate" to eat "normal" food, or tells her to stop whining about her "dietary troubles". If the player chooses to sit at the popular table, Nicole can either angrily demand to know why she is sitting there, forcing Rockett to leave, agree to participate in an after school photo shoot for her, or tell her to leave in order to make room for Chaz. At the end of the school day, Nicole will stop Rockett in the hallway and ask her if she has seen Whitney. She offers to let Rockett walk with her since Whitney isn't around. No matter what choice the player makes, Rockett will walk with her. Nicole will leave her when either Mavis walks up to the two, Whitney reappears, or Ruben walks up to the two, and Nicole becomes angry about the fact that Mr. Rarebit gave Rockett a shirt and put her on the yearbook staff. According to the materials in peoples' lockers, Nicole spends most of the first day mocking Whitney for supposedly going on a date with Arnold Zeitbaum and threatening to kick her out of The Ones if she doesn't explain herself. Later in the game, she entrusts one of her secret diaries, referred to as "The S. S." or "The Source", to Stephanie, who loses it. Nicole sends a letter to Mavis to get her to help find it, but Mavis turns her down, thinking that it's a prank and not worth her time. The Ones spend the next few games trying to get it back. Rockett's Tricky Decision Rockett learns about Max's party when Nicole openly boasts about how awesome it's going to be in front of her. In the lockers during the school scenes, especially Mavis', there is foreshadowing of an unspecified disaster that is going to befall Nicole. Later, during gym class, while playing soccer against either Rockett or an unnamed girl (depending on the player's choices), Nicole trips over the other's leg and rips a hole in the butt of her shorts. If Rockett is involved, Nicole blames her for it. At Max's party, Nicole arrives late to make a grand entrance in her harem girl costume. However, Rockett's Cleopatra costume outshines hers. If Rockett comes to the party from Nakili's with Mavis, Nicole points them out and mocks them in front of the entire party. Rockett's Secret Invitation Nicole confronts Rockett in Language Arts after she shows Jessie the CSG's book, thinking that it's the diary that Stephanie lost. Despite insistence that it's not hers, Nicole doesn't believe her. Later, depending on the player's choice, Nicole and The Ones discover Rockett showing off her photo album to Cleve, Chaz, and Max after school in the cafeteria. The album is a hit with all of them. If she isn't shy about it, Nicole will extend the offer for Rockett to do something with them over the winter break. Rockett's First Dance Nicole sees Rockett as competition for the position of Queen of Hearts, but doesn't openly state it unless certain choices are made. In Language Arts, Nicole becomes unusually friendly with Rockett and tries to get her to talk with her about the dance. After Ms. Tinydahl sends Nicole back to her seat, the class either learns about Nicole's crush on Wolf, either through a note that Nicole passes to Rockett or Nicole's class assignment, or Nicole reads aloud a false note from Rockett revealing the name of her crush. (She is cut off just before she can say the name of the guy.) Purple Moon Place On the Purple Moon website, Nicole was part of a storyline where a new student, Felicia Ravenswood, replaced her as the most popular girl in school. After discovering that Felicia mocked the other students behind their backs, she teamed up with Sharla and Mavis to take her down. During a party at Felicia's parents' mansion, Nicole played recordings of Felicia's phone conversations for the entire party, which immediately turned the entire school against her and allowed Nicole to regain her throne. Purple Moon Place Treasures Nicole's Beauty Brush Mirror "…who's got the coolest hair of all? YOU WISH! Of course it is MOI, and I spend at least an hour on it every night, brushing in the shine. As leader of The Ones I have my reputation to consider…and everyone expects me to set the standard for beauty in this tadpole pond of a school! Yes, little tadpoles, you may use all the lip gloss and hair highlighters you want. But you will still turn into big warty TOADS when you're done! Then you can hop away into your boring, meaningless little lives and HOPE someone wonderful will notice you. Oh, I'm sorry, did I say that OUT LOUD?! Ha ha! I just get like this sometimes, I don't know why. It's truly amazing." Nicole's Dog Flannel "If you're in the know, then you remember that Flannel lives with my Gram. I visit her as often as I can, especially in the summer. She has this fantastic house on the lake, and Flannel and I go for long walks every day. He's an American Cocker Spaniel, and Gram says his sire won Best of Breed at the EastWinter Dog Show…but I really don't care. I love him for his big eyes and soft ears and the way he always runs to me when I visit. People think that Steph is the big animal lover in the Ones…but that's just because I think some things are better left private. That way, no one can tease you about them or take them away." Nicole's Saddle "There's an annual parade over Labor Day Weekend in our town – and of course I have been asked to participate! My equestrian coach, Mr. Talbot Toffeenose, recognized the exceptional quality of my riding skills right away and asked if I would lead the girls' group in the Palomino Association. Can't you just SEE me? Dressed in white satin with heavy fringe, riding a palomino with THIS saddle on? It'll be like I'm a queen or a goddess or something, practically! I think this will be the most brilliant moment of my entire life, so far. I just want to keep it forever. Fortunately, Reginald promised to videotape the entire thing…if he can get away from work in time." Nicole's Camp Bliss "Okay, let's get this straight: The only camp I'll rate Is one with spas, cafes And waiters -- Not creepy tents and Alligators Or wooden logs as Pseudo-seats Or chili dogs And gross-out eats! My camp has steak, Trout Amandine, Chocolate soufflé, Hand-made ice cream, And lots of drinks All tall and cool, Served by a private Swimming pool. As long as I can Find all this, Then camping out's A bag of chips." Nicole's Skunk "Fortunately the cute little skunk I encountered was completely friendly and didn't use its nasty defense mechanism, if you know what I mean. I think it must have sensed that I'm kind of familiar and not an enemy. I mean, one of my good friends, Chaz Franklin, has a pet skunk and it's completely tame. Her name is Rose, isn't that just the best?! She's a completely sweet, non-smelly little furball, almost like a cat. If I didn't spend all my pet hours with horses, I'd probably get one myself!" Nicole's Raccoon "In my opinion, if boys could be turned into animals, Ruben would be exactly a raccoon, poor thing. I mean, the raccoon is a totally cute creature who's always causing total trouble -- and it just gets so tiring sometimes! At first you think their little antics are SO adorable and you want to get closer. But then it's like they can't stop digging into your garbage and you end up wishing they'd completely disappear from the earth in your own vicinity! Ruben Raccoon, I'm not kidding!"